The biggest food drive of the night on the West Shore once again surpassed expectations – almost 14,000 past their goal.

Royal Bay, Edward Milne, and Belmont secondary schools collected 43,880 items in total during 10,000 Tonight on Wednesday, Dec. 11.

“What’s so special about this year is that all three schools came together to have a collective total and not be pitted against each other,” said Ravi Parmar, Sooke School District board chair. “As a former Belmont student myself, it brings a smile to my face to see that this event has such a lasting impact in the community.”

The event was originally launched 10 years ago at Belmont Secondary with the goal to collect 10,000 non-perishable food items, such as pasta sauce, cookies, and canned goods, in a single night. All donations go directly towards the Goldstream Food Bank and Sooke Food Bank.